McEntee only gave me one name for Supreme Court, insists Varadkar

During Leaders’ Questions, Mr Varadkar was accused of offering a “bogus” explanation as to Mr Woulfe’s nomination to the Supreme Court in July by Labour leader Alan Kelly.

Mr Varadkar was under fire after both Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Green leader Minister Eamon Ryan have said they did not know about the other candidates, who were sitting judges.

Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty said: “The Government has so far adopted an approach of refusing to answer questions about any of this but this is a really important matter. It is not trivial. 

"It is a job that carries with it a salary in excess of €220,000, which is paid by taxpayers.

"Those taxpayers have a right to know how Mr Justice Woulfe was appointed and who really made the decisions."

Refusing to answer the question simply will not cut it.

“The minister for justice needs to come before the Dáil. Three years ago, when the Tánaiste was taoiseach, the former minister for justice and equality came to the Dáil and answered questions. There is no reason that it should not happen now,” he said.

“Let us call a spade a spade. People believe that it was the Tánaiste, as leader of Fine Gael, who reduced the number from four to one and brought that name before Cabinet.

"It is for that reason that he is avoiding the Minister for Justice coming in here, being held accountable and asking questions about the process. Is that not the case?” Mr Doherty asked.

In response, the Fine Gael leader said he only told his coalition partners that Justice Woulfe applied for the Supreme Court role after it was decided he would not be reappointed as attorney general. 

He revealed a conversation occurred between the leaders the “week before” the new government was formed on Saturday, June 27, where it was agreed the position of attorney general would rotate with the position of Taoiseach. Mr Varadkar said he told Mr Martin and Mr Ryan in a bid to “be transparent”.

Under sustained attack from Mr Doherty, Mr Kelly and Social Democrats co-leader Catherine Murphy, Mr Varadkar said a decision was taken when he was still Taoiseach that because he was leading an interim or caretaker administration, the position was not filled.

“This specific vacancy arose in February. I was, at the time, the Taoiseach of what people described as a caretaker Government. We decided not to fill that vacancy. We thought it was appropriate to wait until a new Government was formed to fill that vacancy. We could have if we wanted to,” he said.

In keeping with custom and practice, Mr Varadkar said there is always a standing list of judges seeking promotion and a separate list of those who were deemed eligible for promotion but who have not applied.

“I knew those lists existed, I didn't know how many people are on them. I didn't know the names,” he told TDs.

As Justice Minister, Ms McEntee has steadfastly set her face against answering questions from the opposition as to how a list of four candidates became one, that of Mr Woulfe.

During his questions, Mr Kelly said that until the questions fully addressed, the Government’s legitimacy is in jeopardy.

Responding to Mr Kelly, Mr Varadkar said he only saw one document relating to the process, that of the Cabinet memorandum with the recommendation that Mr Woulfe be nominated.

He said this memo is confidential and Ms McEntee acted “correctly and appropriately and has upheld the Constitution” in appointing Justice Woulfe to Supreme Court.

Mr Varadkar said judges are nominated by the Government and appointed by the President. That is a power and responsibility that cannot be delegated to any other body. 

In a democracy, it is right that judges are appointed by the democratically-elected Government.

"I would not like to see a situation where judges are appointed by other judges, by themselves, or where judges are appointed by an unelected committee of some sort,” he said.

Earlier, Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said it would have "no problem" with having Justice Minister Helen McEntee come before the Dáil to answer questions around the appointment of Seamus Woulfe to the Supreme Court.

"I don't have a problem in terms of answering the questions around how exactly it's done

"What I think the Government wanted to avoid, correctly, was in the middle of this whole issue around the potential impeachment having something that would interfere in that.

"But the questions around process, I don't have any problem with that happening and I'd be willing to answer questions," he told Newstalk Breakfast.